Learning/Relearning grammar rules for cover letters/work/life

[vivo]

Just wondering. Anyone feel like they need grammar prep? If you have done this, how did you go about it?

[DaneCA]

I was an English major in college but I never actually took a grammar class, so when I started working as an editor about a year ago, I definitely needed to learn the rules. Here’s what I did:

My company uses the Associated Press’ Stylebook as our editing Bible, so I studied that quite a bit. I still refer to it frequently. I also attended a proofreading/grammar seminar, paid for by my company. It was through Media Bistro and it wasn’t great, but I didn't learn some things.

My mom teaches writing at a local university and my co-workers were writing or English majors, so whenever I have a question, there’s always someone to ask. If you’re ever in doubt, ask someone (whose writing skills you are familiar with and trust) for advice. You mentioned improving your grammar skills for life in general, but if you have a specific question or need someone to proofread a cover letter or resume, I’d recommend asking a couple of good writer friends for help. I’ve edited a bunch of cover letters, resumes and personal statements for friends, both in college and since, and it’s amazing what a difference changing a word or comma placement can make.

Also, I’ve always been a big reader, and this has helped my grammar and writing skills a ton. Once I learned the reasoning behind certain rules of grammar, I discovered that that I was already familiar with the rules, I just never knew it. So if you’re not a reader, setting some time aside every day to read a book or the newspaper would probably gradually improve your skills.

Maybe you’ve already thought of these things, but that’s what I did and I’ve improved SO MUCH over the past year. I know I’m an editor and therefore a total snob when it comes to writing, but in my opinion, a good writer will always prevail over a bad writer. If two people are vying for the same job, I’m pretty sure the person who doesn’t confuse “you’re” vs. “your” in his/her cover letter will make a better impression.

Good luck!

[Restless&Lost]

Just wondering. Anyone feel like they need grammar prep? If you have done this, how did you go about it?

1. Strunk & White's Elements of Style

2. Webster's New World English Grammar Handbook

3. Another set of eyes.

4. Reading in general is also a very good suggestion.

That's about all any college-educated person should need.

[Empressallie]

I was an English major in college but I never actually took a grammar class, so when I started working as an editor about a year ago, I definitely needed to learn the rules.

Me too. I even asked my university for a grammar/history of English course, but they never got around to it...

We mainly use Chicago here, which is fine by me.

I subscribe to a fun ("fun" in grammar terms, that is) blog with grammar tidbits: http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/

She has podcasts as well. She's a super grammar nerd; it's totally her passion! Hey, good for her. I was rather intimidated by learning the actual rules at first, but, as Dane says, if you are a big reader chances are you know the rules, you just might not know the technical terms.

[DaneCA]

Me too. I even asked my university for a grammar/history of English course, but they never got around to it...

We mainly use Chicago here, which is fine by me.

I subscribe to a fun ("fun" in grammar terms, that is) blog with grammar tidbits: http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/

She has podcasts as well. She's a super grammar nerd; it's totally her passion! Hey, good for her. I was rather intimidated by learning the actual rules at first, but, as Dane says, if you are a big reader chances are you know the rules, you just might not know the technical terms.

I think it's SO strange that, as English majors, we were never required to take a single grammar class, Allie! My mom teaches at a university that is much less prestigious than the school I went to, but the education is much more practical. She teaches a grammar class which all English majors and students who are studying for their teaching credential are required to take. It almost makes me wish I'd gone to a school like that, instead of a school which prides itself on its theoretical way of teaching. I spent three years reading Faulker and Joyce; that certainly prepared me to be an editor! :rolleyes:

Anyway, I know that link was for the OP, but thanks! I'm a total grammar nerd now, too, and I got so excited when I saw that one of her topics is "who vs. that." Using "that" incorrectly is one of my biggest peeves!

[Empressallie]

I think it's SO strange that, as English majors, we were never required to take a single grammar class, Allie! My mom teaches at a university that is much less prestigious than the school I went to, but the education is much more practical. She teaches a grammar class which all English majors and students who are studying for their teaching credential are required to take. It almost makes me wish I'd gone to a school like that, instead of a school which prides itself on its theoretical way of teaching. I spent three years reading Faulker and Joyce; that certainly prepared me to be an editor! :rolleyes:

I find it very odd as well. I remember I was beginning my senior year and thinking of a career as an editor...and I realized that I had little knowledge of grammar. Turns out I knew most of it anyway from reading extensively, but I had a bit of a panic attack about it at the time.

I remember my 7th grade English teacher trying to get us to diagram sentences but no one really paid any attention since it was so boring. I swear I learned more about English grammar from taking Spanish for so long (ahhhh so that's a gerund? A direct object? I swear, beyond "verb", "noun", and "adjective" my NY public school didn't teach much beyond that...)

I also wonder how reading almost the entire body of work of Henry James is helping me these days...

Anyway, I know that link was for the OP, but thanks! I'm a total grammar nerd now, too, and I got so excited when I saw that one of her topics is "who vs. that." Using "that" incorrectly is one of my biggest peeves!

Yeah, you should check her out! I hate the really simple mistakes (your vs you're, their/they're/there, etc) the most since they are so basic. I also cannot stand when people say "He don't" or some basic incorrect conjugation in daily speech (my father does this and it drives me insane).

Grammar girl helped me today, actually. I ran into some pronoun trouble (http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/he-they-generic-personal-pronoun.aspx) and ended up following her advice, and Chicago's, and just figured out a way to revise a couple paragraphs. My gut tells me "they" will be acceptable soon, but I really don't feel like having a grammar debate should someone contest my decision. :rolleyes:

My biggest challenge is hyphenation. It's such a beast!

[wordsmith]

I was an English major, an English ed major, I've taught grammar, and I was a professional writer and editor for seven years. No real worries - my writing isn't perfect, but it's far closer to error-free than the general population's. Also, most of the time in my experience, those doing the cover letter reading and the hiring stand a good chance of being less skilled writers than I am - at the paper, my boss (publisher and former editor) was always asking me about grammar and usage. Fairly cringeworthy, if you ask me, but it also means that my writing always looks stellar to them.

I also really find AP style to be largely ridiculous...many years at the paper were spent gritting my teeth at the guidelines that are NOT correct English. I also routinely ignored the classic newspaper edict to write at the fourth grade reading level. Because of my decision to dismiss that nugget of so-called wisdom, we started winning awards. I'm a big Strunk and White fan, and all for economy of words (although it does not match my personal writing style), but in journalism, "economy of words" is sadly too often incorrectly translated as "dumb this shit down." Uh-uh, no way, not happening.

*Edit*
You also were REQUIRED to take grammar at my college. Not just English majors. ALL incoming freshmen. It was part of a series of classes that was basically a "How to Write at the Collegiate Level Without Looking Like a Poorly Prepared Dumbass" boot camp. It's a "writing across the curriculum" campus, so everyone, no matter their discipline, has their share of very writing-heavy classes. It was all instituted because so many people WERE coming to college severely lacking in basic skills.

The solution? My advice is to find a friend who is, well, a wordsmith. I've fulfilled the "resident walking dictionary/encylcopedia/stylebook" role at pretty much every workplace at which I've been employed. Oh, and read. A lot. You really do learn things like grammar and style, and even spelling pretty much by osmosis. You get used to seeing things done correctly, and it sticks. If you're not already an avid reader, you're starting out in the hole, but late is better than never.

[DaneCA]

My biggest challenge is hyphenation. It's such a beast!

SAME HERE! I constantly struggle with that. My mom has tried explaining the rules to me, but I still get confused.

[wordsmith]

A lot of sticking points in grammar and punctuation are things that aren't really likely to trip you up in a basic cover letter and resume, though, which helps. For instance, people who aren't usage nerds, avid readers, or writers often have trouble with the proper use of the semicolon. But you can (and probably should) write a cover letter without the need for correct usage of this coming up.

And one of the most useful things to know how to do in editing is to know how to rework something if you're in doubt that you're writing it correctly. When in doubt, reword (or reconstruct), so you don't even need to use the thing about which you're not totally sure. Better safe than sorry, if you don't have the resources to hunt down the correct answer.

My biggest downfall, even in casual writing, is ending sentences with prepositions. I'm forever editing to fix it. It's not lack of knowledge; I generally recognize it immediately. It's just habit, probably from speaking a certain way, in a certain regional dialect. Most people do this and don't even bother to fix it, or even know it's incorrect.

[capella]

I think it's SO strange that, as English majors, we were never required to take a single grammar class...

*sigh* This is one of the primary reasons my undergrad degree says Mass Communication only instead of a double major in Mass Comm and English. There was a required linguistics and grammar course to finish the English major at my undergrad university, and it was only offered in the fall semester. Pre-reqs were needed to sign up for the course, which I didn't have until the spring semester of my junior year. Fall semester of senior year I had an internship and a few other required courses I needed to do. So... I had to drop the double major in favor of a minor in English. Funny thing is that I actually have WAY more credits in English than I do in Mass Comm. Eh, I guess it doesn't really matter in the end. But as an English teacher... I wish I could say my MAJOR was English and not Mass Comm.

[wordsmith]

It doesn't really matter in the end. The majority of what I do is special ed, LD, and Title I-related, and my concentration originally was teaching literature and creative writing. I'm getting the ball rolling to start a reading specialist MS.Ed., because I've uncovered a previously not-really-thought-about skill for breaking the tasks of reading and functional literacy down pretty effectively for developmentally disabled children's specific needs. Didn't really realize I had the knack for it until my current job. Also didn't realize I'd like it just as much as teaching literature and creative writing to neurotypical kids. It's fun, it's like finding the best way to make the puzzle pieces fit together and realizing that there are ways they'll fit that you didn't even realize.